If you Rode Forbidden Journey...POST HERE! :) (Spoilers)

[rjvose17]

Ok, if the TM was correct, then you're saying it was over six hour wait at a preview??? How is that going to work with the general public? I mean, resort guests get in an hour early so does that mean that if I visit the park and get it at the 9am rope drop that there's already going to be a six+ hour wait for a ride just from resort guests alone? If that's the case, then it doesn't sound like that ride has a very large capacity at all. I can remember when Spiderman had 4 hour waits, but I was always able to get on within ten minutes if I got there at 9am rope drop...and that was with the resort guests having been there for early entry.

Anyone else find this strange? I'm going in September during my Disney trip, but not being a resort guest, will get in at 9am. Sounds like this ride may be a complete write-off.....

If you read it right I didnt say today was six hours, it had a posted wait time of 60 mins today and 75 mins yesterday. I just said that the TM told us, that the length of the queue was equal to a six hour wait.

 

[black562]

So what's the best thing to do regarding lockers? My original plan was to get there at rope drop, ride FJ, then do the rest of IOA, come back into Hogsmead to get my souvenirs. If its crazy crowded at the shops, I may have to do all my shopping right there in the morning, which means getting lockers. Is it best to get a locker for the day, or just go from free locker to free locker on the rides that require it, which are most rides at IOA. I think they said you get three hours for free? Are those at all the major rides, like Hulk, Spiderman, the water rides, etc?

I also think that after leaving IOA, I'll take the bags to the car before heading over to the studios (doing both parks in one day).

Just working on logistics and trying not to get jammed up in crowds. If there's a crazy line for Olivander's, I may just go to the store to get my wand...to me, I would want to have the experience myself rather than watch someone else do it, but that's just me.

 

[black562]

If you read it right I didnt say today was six hours, it had a posted wait time of 60 mins today and 75 mins yesterday. I just said that the TM told us, that the length of the queue was equal to a six hour wait.

I thought you said it was lined into the streets of Hogsmead? But I understand what the other poster said about them not having all the twists and turns open, so that may be the case. An hour or so wait doesn't sound bad though. Sounds like getting there a half hour or so before park opening and I'll be fine.

 

[inkkognito]

I think you missed my question. I asked about what time to be in line for the previews and what time they actually opened the gates. Sounds like you might not get to it since you have such an early day tomorrow but wanted to ask again in case you do.

 

[rjvose17]

Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to satiate us fanatics. You have no idea how much we appreciate it!

I am thrilled to share, I was sooo excited to get in and enjoy it myself I was pumped to share. My husband was only there with me the first day and didnt get to ride, so I rode alone today and couldnt wait to get home to post! I even bought my pic, not a good one, but at least proof that I rode. I will scan and post it when I return to Maine. Also I have to add, that if it wasn't for the help and support from the folks here on the boards I woudn't have had the knowledge to gain access, so thanks to you all

 

[rjvose17]

I think you missed my question. I asked about what time to be in line for the previews and what time they actually opened the gates. Sounds like you might not get to it since you have such an early day tomorrow but wanted to ask again in case you do.

I did, sorry..... I arrived at IOA at 6:45 AM, and was one of the first at the turnstyles. They let us "in" IOA as far as the branch off to hulk and Suess Landing at 7:45 am Then waited till 8 am and had a line of TM's to escort us to the land we had to walk and NOT pass them. I would get there ASAP, FJ seems to only run for about the first hour or less. :-( We got there at 9:30 the morning before and we waited in line til 10 and it was down. Once in the land I ran to the castle, I wasn't the only one, and there was no line at that point..about 8:10 am. Once out, it was 60 mins posted..ill post pics of the huge line, once I get home tomorrow night, if im not pulling my hair out from the return trip, I leave orlando with my family, 2 kids, 6&3, husband, and father and mother in law...arrive in Portland Maine at 12:05, then have a four hour drive home to very Northern Maine. So, it might not be until monday. Ill check again tonight before I got to bed. Good luck I hope you get in.

 

[inkkognito]

Thanks so much! We won't be able to park till 7 (we're using our free Premier valet after hotel check in as I don't want to pay the $15 hotel parking) so we probably won't get to IOA till 7:30ish. Sounds like we'll still have a halfway decent shot at riding it. I wonder if they'll think we're nuts checking in at the hotel around 6:30 a.m.

Have a safe trip home!

 

[scasta86]

I am thrilled to share, I was sooo excited to get in and enjoy it myself I was pumped to share. My husband was only there with me the first day and didnt get to ride, so I rode alone today and couldnt wait to get home to post! I even bought my pic, not a good one, but at least proof that I rode. I will scan and post it when I return to Maine. Also I have to add, that if it wasn't for the help and support from the folks here on the boards I woudn't have had the knowledge to gain access, so thanks to you all

Thanks for the report! You said you got to the gate at 6:45 am... Was there a lot of people there at that time?
Once they opened the park, what was the procedure for going into the land? Was it a mad rush of people going in, or were the TMs controlling the flow of guests?
Do you know how long the ride was open for, before it broke down?

Thanks for your help!

 

[damo]

You are famous now! I think you are the first person to give a detailed online report, so expect to be read by a whole lot of people who have been waiting not so patiently. You can brag to your family about how important you now are!

 

[rjvose17]

I thought you said it was lined into the streets of Hogsmead? But I understand what the other poster said about them not having all the twists and turns open, so that may be the case. An hour or so wait doesn't sound bad though. Sounds like getting there a half hour or so before park opening and I'll be fine.

It was in the streets of Hogsmead, I dont know if by that point the ride was down. I didn't ask. I just took pics of the people in line. The six hour/merging queues quote came from the day before. Both days FJ went down early according to reports from today and I was in line yesterday when it went down. They played the music yesterday asking for patience while they fixed it, then they told everyone to leave cause it wasn't going to work again. I woudn't at ANY point from now on underestimate the time for the lines. Remember that today was for package holders ONLY. With only a few thousand (and I am a terrible guesser at that number) It being that long, I would expect the line to be crazy. I had to RUN at full speed to get there today and yesterday. I even left my husband in the dust because he didnt think we would need to run, HE was wrong, since he didnt get to ride yesterday. I was there at 6:45 am this morning and got into HP at 9 yesterday, but didnt get to FJ until 9:30 and didnt make it. I dont know when you are planning on going, but the lines are always going to be a issue,its def. worth at least a 90 min wait if you can do it.

 

[rjvose17]

Thanks for the report! You said you got to the gate at 6:45 am... Was there a lot of people there at that time?
Once they opened the park, what was the procedure for going into the land? Was it a mad rush of people going in, or were the TMs controlling the flow of guests?
Do you know how long the ride was open for, before it broke down?

Thanks for your help!

There was a few dozen people, I was first in line at the turnstyle because they opened all of them and skipped over to a empty one...They had all turnstyles open and lots of TM's, managers, and SECURITY there to take care of the crowds. They escorted you to the WWOHP and set you free at the gate, at that point, most people bolted for the castle, others were too awe struck. I RAN. I heard the ride was up for 45 mins. I dont know how much truth there is to that though. I went through the ride with no line, went to the gift shop, shopped for about 10 mins, bought my picture and by the time I came out the huge line was there. If I can post I will try to post a pic.

 

[rjvose17]

You are famous now! I think you are the first person to give a detailed online report, so expect to be read by a whole lot of people who have been waiting not so patiently. You can brag to your family about how important you now are!

Ha! Thanks Damo, your making me feel more important than I actually am! I just got INCREDIBLY lucky these past few days. As far as famous I dont know if I can handle that kind of pressure.

 

[rjvose17]

how to I post pics? Sorry sounds dumb but i've never done it on here. I clicked on Insert Image, but it tells me to add the URL, I am uploading from my documents...how do I do that?

 

[Stevegriswold]

Everything I have read about USF Harry Potter has been pretty depressing.

These families buy airfare, expensive Universal Studios hotel stays, and a pay extra for a special Harry Potter package and then after spending all that money they get there to be told it's open only 8 AM - 10 AM (only 2 hours) and by the way the only new attraction the first day was down and the second day was running for just 20 minutes from reports.

USF is now doing "castle tours" So these people paid extra and traveled to FL to literally tour a que line. I would be irate if I dragged my family to this park two days in a row to stand in a que line both days for a non working ride and then have the entire area close and be told I hope I enjoyed my “castle tour”.

 

[rjvose17]

So what's the best thing to do regarding lockers? My original plan was to get there at rope drop, ride FJ, then do the rest of IOA, come back into Hogsmead to get my souvenirs. If its crazy crowded at the shops, I may have to do all my shopping right there in the morning, which means getting lockers. Is it best to get a locker for the day, or just go from free locker to free locker on the rides that require it, which are most rides at IOA. I think they said you get three hours for free? Are those at all the major rides, like Hulk, Spiderman, the water rides, etc?

I also think that after leaving IOA, I'll take the bags to the car before heading over to the studios (doing both parks in one day).

Just working on logistics and trying not to get jammed up in crowds. If there's a crazy line for Olivander's, I may just go to the store to get my wand...to me, I would want to have the experience myself rather than watch someone else do it, but that's just me.

That's a tough call. I intentionally didnt take my big DSLR camera today and stuffed my bra with money, tickets and more just so I didnt have to use a locker to store my camera and purse. Right now I feel like for riding FJ time is extra important. Once the park opens to the general public...then it's all about what you want to do and what's important to your trip. I would def. dump the bags off at the car when switching parks. Good luck

 

[damo]

how to I post pics? Sorry sounds dumb but i've never done it on here. I clicked on Insert Image, but it tells me to add the URL, I am uploading from my documents...how do I do that?

You have to first upload your pictures onto something like Photobucket. Then you can come on here and post the link using the

 

[rjvose17]

Thanks so much! We won't be able to park till 7 (we're using our free Premier valet after hotel check in as I don't want to pay the $15 hotel parking) so we probably won't get to IOA till 7:30ish. Sounds like we'll still have a halfway decent shot at riding it. I wonder if they'll think we're nuts checking in at the hotel around 6:30 a.m.

Have a safe trip home!

Thank you for the safe return wishes, and I hope you get in and enjoy WWOHP. I will be coming to you for advice for our first disney cruise. We hope to take our first in the next year or two

 

[rjvose17]

You have to first upload your pictures onto something like Photobucket. Then you can come on here and post the link using the

OH ok, I see. I am too tired for that tonight,since I have to be up at 4 am to travel home I better try and get some sleep so my I don't get too crabby with the family. Thanks again everyone for all your support. I almost couldnt post tonight because the internet was giving me a hard time, and not working consistantly. Take care everyone.

 

[cressy]

It was in the streets of Hogsmead, I dont know if by that point the ride was down. I didn't ask. I just took pics of the people in line. The six hour/merging queues quote came from the day before. Both days FJ went down early according to reports from today and I was in line yesterday when it went down. They played the music yesterday asking for patience while they fixed it, then they told everyone to leave cause it wasn't going to work again. I woudn't at ANY point from now on underestimate the time for the lines. Remember that today was for package holders ONLY. With only a few thousand (and I am a terrible guesser at that number) It being that long, I would expect the line to be crazy. I had to RUN at full speed to get there today and yesterday. I even left my husband in the dust because he didnt think we would need to run, HE was wrong, since he didnt get to ride yesterday. I was there at 6:45 am this morning and got into HP at 9 yesterday, but didnt get to FJ until 9:30 and didnt make it. I dont know when you are planning on going, but the lines are always going to be a issue,its def. worth at least a 90 min wait if you can do it.

What a great FJ description!
I rode it once yesterday also, and could really only remember general stuff about the ride itself(that's why I didnt posta description), how in the world did you remember all those details?
I want to note that all onsite guests had access to the preview, not just package holders, and apparently that will continue, as the letter we got stated that we were invited to the preview every day of our stay.
Also, yesterday we got to WWOHP at 8:30 and FJ was down; we got in line and after about 15 minutes it was up and we walked the fabulous queue at a moderate speed and pretty much got right on. There were way more people today; we arrived at about the same time and it was already down. Since it seems likely that at present it's going to go down, while you ought to be
there first thing, if you're at the IOA gates right at 8 you ought to be fine.

Someone asked about rubber bands- yes, if you wore flipflops you were given wide rubber bands to secure them to your feet. My girls wondered if that would continue, and we figured it probably would as we saw that a podium near the loading area was chock full of them.

 

[Laurabearz]

Safe travels Jan!! Thanks so much for all your information!!